The Second Vow
by annades49800
Summary: The vow restraining the three most powerful gods of Olympus from having children has been broken. The three brothers come to an agreement that the only way to maintain peace is to hide their children from the outside world; the only way to maintain peace is for the children to be raised by their godly parents.
1. The Second Vow

**Hello all, I'm back! It has been quite a while but I decided I wanted to keep my writing skills fresh over the summer and what better way to do that than to write fanfiction? I was inspired because I read all of the other stories I've written and I was so appalled by my writing that I decided I needed to redeem myself and try to write something that isn't cringe worthy. I'm not sure I succeeded, but that's for you, lovely readers, to decide.**

* * *

The whole north east side of America was engulfed in the rage of the gods. The seas howled their rage and skies flashed their anger. Electricity was so thick in the air is was almost solid. Earthquakes shook the land so strongly that many structures were razed from their foundations. Much like their dominions, Zeus and Poseidon were in an upset. The brothers were for once united. United in rage, but united none the less. Hades was the only brother of this trinity not to be united. Quite conversely Hades was the reason for the two brothers unity, the reason for their rage. However Hades himself was not wholly the target of the two brothers' rage; only half of him was subject to their wrath. The other half took the form of one Maria di Angelo. Together these two halves formed two small children, Nico and Bianca di Angelo.

Upon his arrival to the Underworld, the messenger god who was tasked to bring Hades to the god of Olympus, found that it wasn't necessary for himself to appear for Hades to get the message Hermes had been tasked with delivering. Apparently even miles below the earth's surface televisions, more specifically the news channel, could function. You would have to be an idiot not to connect the havoc being wrecked on the surface of the world to the two gods who controlled the natural forces doing the wrecking. And Lord Hades was not an idiot. The arrival of Hermes simply confirmed to Hades that there would be a face to face confrontation between himself and his brothers that he would be forced to deal with, or else force Charon to work triple time to ferry the growing number of dead into the already overcrowded Underworld.

Hermes delivered his message without a word, his eyes communicating more effectively than words could. With a pop, both gods folded in on themselves, disappearing only to reappear in the atrium of the throne room on Mount Olympus. The large room had never been louder than in the silent moments that preceded the Zeus' thunderous voice.

"How dare you violate the vow? You have completely destroyed any chance for peace among our children-"

Hades' voice cuts through the beginning of Zeus' monolog with a tone colder than ice. "Do not think that I am unaware of your violations of the vow."

The tension that forms in the long silence following Hades' proclamation is harder than rock.

"I have absolutely no idea what violations you are referring to but I assure you that I would never-" Zeus begins in a voice that hardly conceals his surprise and fear of the discovery of his own secret.

For the second time, Hades' voice stops his brothers': "Do not lie to me. I know that you, brother, like me have sired a child. However, you, unlike me, conceived this child well after the installation of our vow. My children were born before this vow was enacted, making them entirely legitimate. By thinking that you had the audacity to confront me about the matter only gave me the opportunity to confront you about your illegitimate child. Your eagerness to flaunt your power is your downfall, Zeus."

"Do not speak to me in that tone, brother," Zeus retaliates, having no real argument to combat the statement Hades has made. "Before things can go too far let us come to an agreement."

"Wait one moment," Hades interrupts for the third time. "I have one more thing to share: I am aware that not just you, brother, " referring to Zeus, " broke the vow." At this, all the color from Poseidon's face is drained. "I have received word that a mortal woman impregnated by no other than you, dear brother, is about to give birth." This time in reference to Poseidon. "This would make me the only one here who has not broken the vow. How ironic, considering I was brought here on the charge of being the only one guilty of this crime."

"Regardless," Zeus continues in a tone that suggests that this conversation was going exactly as he has planned, although the pallor of his skin would suggest differently. "We need to do away with the threat the offspring pose."

For the first time, Poseidon adds to the conversation. "Are you suggesting that we kill our own children?" His voice is strong, made loud by the intense anger brewing inside him, but even his powerful facade cannot conceal his fear.

"If that is what it takes to restore the balance, then yes." Zeus thunders in a voice that dares someone to challenge his authority. Hades does just this. "I will not kill my children- they are not the ones at fault here! If we are to punish anyone it should be the two of you-"

"You dare suggest that I be punished?" Zeus demands, thunder booming ominously as if to emphasize his power. "That suggestion is no more audacious than yours." Hades fires back, the air around him seeming to turn dark. If a mortal were to step into the throne room right now they would not be able to survive the sheer power radiating off the gods.

"Brothers, there is a simple way to fix this!" Poseidon cuts in before an all out war can begin. "By hiding our children away from children of the other gods we can prevent any discord. If the children cannot interact with each other, no harm can be done."

The other gods reflect over this for an eternity that lasts only several seconds. Hades is the first to respond. "I see no problem with this. It takes care of any harm that could be caused by the children. However I believe that to ensure that the children are indeed isolated, it will be necessary for them to be placed somewhere no demigod could ever find. I will hide my children in the Underworld. Poseidon can bring his child to his palace under the sea and you, Zeus can hide your children on Olympus."

Zeus nods his agreement then replies, "Then it is decided. As soon as the children are born, they will be placed into hiding. However, we must ensure that no other... mishaps occur. If, after the birth of the children, any complications arise- this includes interaction between the child and the outside world and interaction between one of ourselves and a mortal- the punishment must be severe. If any complications occur the punishment will be the death of the child and the mother. Are we in agreement?"

"Yes, Lord." The two brothers answer.

"Then let my will be done."

* * *

 **I sure hope some of you were able to make it through that rather awkward introduction to my story. It was pretty hard to get out and despite being only around 1000 words, it took me over an hour to write. I have no idea if anyone is interested in reading this but I would really love it if I could get some feedback. I am writing this story because I love Percy Jackson and want to write a fic for it, but more so I want to improve my writing. If anyone would give me suggestions to help me out that would be SSOO greatly appreciated. Additionally, suggestions for ideas of things for me to write about in this story would be awesome. I have a general idea but only for the very beginning. I'm just gonna write about Percy growing up with Poseidon and I'm only gonna write until my school starts in the fall so any ideas yall have to keep this story interesting would be super helpful.**

 **Thanks for reading I hope yall enjoyed it!**

 **-annades49800**


	2. Turning Point

**Hi guys, here's the second chapter! It's just a filler chapter and I kinda didn't even mean for it to be a chapter, at least not it's own chapter. It's just a brief summary of the Poseidon-Sally love story. [I had to get some info to ensure that everything was accurate so shout out to Riordan Wiki]. It leads up to what I had intended to be the second chapter. I'll have the third chapter up soon, though! I'm really enjoying writing, I forgot how much I enjoyed it and I'm able to write faster than I thought I'd be able to so lucky you!**

 **Anyways, enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Sally Jackson had not had an easy life. At the age of five, Sally had been orphaned. A plane crash 150 miles south of Lake Ontario was felled at 3 A.M, leaving her parents, along with every other passenger aboard that flight, dead. Consequently, Sally was sent to live with her uncle, who, during Sally's last year of high school, was diagnosed with cancer, forcing Sally to drop out of school to support the growing bill generated by the cancer treatments. But once more, Lady Luck was absent, and in her place, Death came to pay a visit to Sally Jackson. After the death of Uncle Rich, Sally had been left with no family, no money and no high school diploma. Sally expected her life to continue on this thread of constant disappointment and general uselessness, that is until, for the first time in her life it seemed, something went right.

Her newfound trend of good luck started when Sally went to the beach one evening; walking on its' vast shores somehow made the troubles of her life seem insignificant. Sally sometimes thought that the waves could simply wash over the jagged shores of her life and smooth them out like they had done to the sand that now presses comfortingly against her toes.

The sound of the water beating hypnotically against the smooth sand lulled her into sleep like state- still aware and conscious, but completely engulfed in her thoughts. That's why she decided she must be hallucinating when she saw the large man with a three-pronged trident walk onto the shores from the depths of the ocean. She blinked hard several times, rubbing her eyes and when the man didn't disappear with the rest of her dream-like thoughts, she approached him. Though not without her pepper spray hidden away in her bag, out of sight but in reaching distance. If growing up in New York had taught her anything it was that the best way to handle strange men behaving in strange ways was a good spray of burning liquid to the face.

"Are you planning on going fishing or something?" Sally asked, without any attempt of preemptive conversation.

The large, tan, very toned and all around attractive man replied, looking slightly shocked, "I actually don't really have a taste for fishing. I find it somewhat barbaric."

"I would have to agree. Then why are you carrying a trident?" This question caused an even more shocked look to appear on the tan man's face. He quickly recomposed himself and asked, "Why are you carrying a bottle of pepper spray?"

Sally was confused, but didn't feel threatened like she might have if another man was insinuating that he had been watching her- because how else would he have known she had the spray? "How did you know I have pepper spray?"

"How did you know I was carrying a trident?" In that moment, Sally was convinced she was holding a conversation with someone who wasn't entirely mentally present.

"Because I can see it..." She replied, speaking slowing as if explaining something to a small child.

"You see, just like you I can see through things. You can see through the Mist. _That's_ how you knew I was carrying my trident. I, on the other hand, can see through many things." Sally responds to this by shifting her weight uncomfortably. Much to her chagrin, the man laughs. Somehow the sound lights something inside Sally, something that hadn't been lit in a very long time.

"You do realize you're insane, right?" Sally asks the man casually, as if discussing the weather. "You can't see through my purse, that's impossible. And what do you mean I can see through the mist? There isn't any mist here for me to see through." The man's eyes light mischievously and for the first time, Sally notices what a beautiful color they are, and how they seem to reflect the color of the water he had just risen from.

"We are not talking about the same thing here. I am not referring to your mortal, water-based fog. I mean the Mist. The supernatural substance, generated by the goddess Hecate. The substance meant to distort the reality of mortals, to hide the world of gods and monsters from those unfit to see it."

"Oh," Sally responds as if she completely understands now, as if she were the idiot in this situation. "Of course, the Mist. How silly of me for not knowing. You know, I think I'll just be going now." She turns her back, completely intending to walk away from this strange man and never see him again.

"Wait." The man jogs up to Sally, gently catching her arm and pulling her back around to him. "I didn't catch your name."

"And what makes you think I want to give it you?" This would be an appropriate time for a good spray of burning liquid to the face but somehow Sally doesn't feel threatened. Quite conversely, she wants to be around him. Though she knows that it is unintelligent to hang around mentally unstable people, she can't help but feel a pull towards this man, like a magnet inside her, urging her towards him.

"Because you're curious. You want to find out more about this strange crazy man, who just walked out of the ocean. Just know, if you ever want to know more, which you will, just say my name. I'll find you."

"Are you going to tell me your name or are you gonna force me to say every man's name until you magically appear before me?"

"Well while that certainly would be entertaining I assure you that I don't have an ordinary man's name, so your guessing game would probably be all for naught. If you want to see me again, just say Poseidon. I'll hear you." At that moment, a cloud moved to make way for the sun, who released blinding light down into Sally's eyes. When her eyes readjusted, the man was gone.

As Poseidon had said would happen, curiosity did get the best of her, and so she found herself walking down the same stretch of beach every day in hopes of seeing the man again. She knew that it was impossible to even try to make Poseidon appear by simply saying his name, so refrained from attempting it for the first three days. Soon, however, she realized that what was once impossible was commonplace, what was once crazy was now sane. And so, on the fourth day of patrolling the beach, Sally softly, uncertainly whispered his name.

She looked around, half of her expecting Poseidon to appear out of thin air, half of her scolding herself for even thinking that the impossible could happen. Disappointment clear on her face, Sally turned, prepared to head back to her car, never to return to this stretch of beach again.

That's when she heard him. "No need for that look of disappointment. If you don't want me here, I can leave." She turned back around and saw him, smirking slightly, knowing his leaving was the last thing she wanted.

Sally responded quickly. "You're not getting away that fast." Little did Sally know at that time that Poseidon would indeed leave her life _that_ fast. "You have some explaining to do. Starting with how you were able to hear me." And explain he did. About how he was able to hear her at any time when she spoke his name, due to the fact that he was a god. That wasn't even the most unbelievable part, believe it or not. Sally learned about the land of the gods, of Olympus. Of the truth in the myths she was read to by her parents and uncle as a child. Poseidon opened her eyes to a whole new world, one she had seen only in breif glimpses, but never been a part of. As he spoke, Sally soon found herself falling into a sense of comfort, of safety, something she hadn't felt since before her uncle was diagnosed. Sally soon found herself falling in love with the man who smelled of the sea.

* * *

 **So there it is! Next chapter will be back to where the first chapter left off. I hope yall liked the chapter and PLEASE REVIEW I will be so much happier and inspired to write quicker if I know that what people think of my story and give me ideas and suggestions**

 **Thanks, annades49800**


	3. Luck Run Dry

**Chapter three: BTW this was so freaking sad to write, I hope I make y'all sad too so we can be sad together**

* * *

Sally registered the smell of the ocean before she registered the presence of the man walking behind her. Like always, she felt the tingle of emotion fly from her heart to her stomach that indicated Poseidon's presence. This tingle only augmented in fervor when a small being, half Sally, and half Poseidon, took up residence in her belly.

"Hello, love," Sally says, not turning around. Sally can hear the smile in his voice when he replies. "How'd you know I was here?"

"You're not exactly discreet," Sally responds, not wanting to tell him she can smell him, thinking that might be taken the wrong way.

The silence drags on and Sally waits for Poseidon to respond, always the conversationalist. When an eternity that only lasts several seconds continues to fill the space between them, Sally puts her hand, dwarfed by his large cheek, to his face, forcing him to look at her.

"What's wrong?" She asks gently. Poseidon sighs, visibly distraught. He snakes his muscular arms, taut as steel rope, around Sally's waist, pressing their bodies as close together as the large lump that is their unborn child would allow.

"I have something to tell you. Something you aren't going to like." Poseidon says in a voice that sounds more like a groan than regular speech. Sally stiffens. She expected this. How could a god- a _god-_ simply abandon his all-powerful, immortal being duties to settle down with some mortal woman? One of many mortal women none the less. It simply is irrational to think that Sally Jackson was special enough to defy a tradition of more than a thousand years. Of course Poseidon would have to leave her. It would be useless to think anything else. But, at least, Sally would have one last thing from Poseidon, a parting gift: Percy.

Sally steels herself before squaring her shoulders, shaking herself from Poseidon's comforting grip. She grabs his shoulders and leads him over to a bench, sitting him down. Sally sits next to him, leaning towards him so their knees touch.

"Well. Get on with it."

And he does. He reminds her of what he told her before their relationship became serious, that the other gods must not know of their affair, that it was forbidden. Then he tells her that the other gods have found out, discovered not only the affair but the child growing inside of Sally. And that, worst of all, Percy would have to be taken from her. At this, every fear, everything wrong that has occurred in her life, seems insignificant, a tiny pebble next to the boulder of tragedy that is Poseidon's revelation. Sally feels as if she has been submerged in ice cold water; freezing from her head to toes and unable to breathe.

"No," Sally whispers, "No no no no no no. How could this happen? How did they find out?"

Poseidon murmurs something unintelligible. "What?" Sally whispers urgently, desperate to find the reason for the blow that's tearing her life apart.

"It was my fault," Poseidon whispers in a voice almost too quiet to decipher.

"No. It can't be." Sally's mind hit a brick wall, an insurmountable obstacle that obstructs her ability to comprehend.

"It was my fault," Poseidon repeats in a whisper that sounds more like a groan. "I told Zeus about Hades' children. Hades retaliated. He knew about you and about Zeus' children. We had to come to a compromise. We decided that we would have to remove the children from the mortal world for the protection of the entire world. You don't understand... the prophecy. If it applies to any of the children sired by me or my brothers... it would be catastrophic."

"I don't understand. My child is being taken away from me because he _could_ be the child of some _prophecy_? No. No. I won't allow it. I'm not giving Percy up."

The look on Poseidon's face causes some of Sally's rock hard resolve crumble. "What? What's that face?"

"You don't understand." Poseidon starts, seeming to have trouble forming any more words. "If you don't allow me to take Percy, my brothers will have both of you... disposed of." Any hope Sally had of recovering from this new development fell away. There was no way she would risk the life of her unborn child. Not for anything.

"Where are you taking him?" Sally asks, voice shaking, tears rolling steadily down her cheeks.

"Under the sea. With me. To Atlantis."

"What? How will he survive?" The feeling that she was talking to a crazy man Sally felt the first time she talked to Poseidon rose up in her again.

"Percy will have powers beyond anything you can imagine. Going under the water will do nothing but help him develop, to grow stronger. My blood rolling through his veins gives him more than the title of demigod. Percy will be able to do what I can do. He will have the power to control the sea. That's what makes him so powerful, in part. The power possessed by the children of me and my brothers far surpasses that of other demigods. In the past, this has posed many problems."

The tension that resides in the silence between Sally and Poseidon is so thick it's almost palpable.

"How long?" Sally asks, her voice a sound of pain, her eyes a broken mirror, each shard a piece of what was once her heart. "How long do I have until I have to give Percy to you?"

"As soon as he's born," Poseidon says quietly, his voice every bit as broken as Sally's.

"Will I get to see him again? Or you?" Sally questions, knowing the answer but having to ask regardless.

"No." At this, the first of many tears spills from Poseidon's' deep, sea-colored eyes. Eyes that look, in the moment, as if they contain every sorrow in their depths.

"Then we better make the most of our time together."

/\\\\\

The two weeks that followed were bittersweet. Both Poseidon and Sally tried to continue as they had been but found it near impossible to have even a simple conversation without it fading into an unpleasant silence, full of dread for what was soon to come.

Sally found herself debating whether she wanted her pregnancy to continue forever or if she wanted Percy to simply come out and end this unbearable waiting. But worrying over what Sally wanted was trivial; if what Sally wanted held any consequence she wouldn't be in this situation at all. When Sally finally felt her water break she was halfway frozen in crippling fear and halfway filled with relief; her waiting was finally over. Well not quite, she supposed. First, she would have to go through the process of giving birth. Thankfully, the whole process seemed to fly by, partially due to her mind moving a thousand miles a minute, trying to absorb every moment of her remaining time with her unborn son, which resulted in her being unable to absorb anything. Partially because of all the drugs.

Sally failed to register that Poseidon appeared in the hospital room the moment she murmured his name. She also failed to register that that would be the last time Poseidon ever responded to her call.

When Percy was finally brought into the world, Sally was so exhausted she had forgotten the dread she had been dragging around with her since she learned that Percy would be taken from her. In the first moments Sally held the tiny baby in her arms, everything was right in the world.

Then the smell of the ocean came rushing into her nose and Sally remembered that everything was not right in the world. Quite the opposite, really.

She burst into tears. Horrible, heaving, loud tears. Tears that ripped at her throat, seeming to tear it apart just as her heart was being torn apart.

Poseidon's hand came immediately to her cheek, as it always had whenever Sally needed comfort. The thought that this hand would never again cup her face, that Poseidon's voice would never again whisper into her ear, telling her everything would be okay only brought more tears. Soon Percy joined in and the room was flooded with nurses aiming to stop the crying. Yet the nurses were unaware that the cause of the tears was beyond their abilities to fix. While they might be able to soothe their ward's physical ailments, the nurses would never be able to fix the real problem; they would never be able to heal the deep gash being torn in Sally's heart.

/\\\\\

As soon as the doctor discharged Sally from the hospital, Poseidon brought her and their newly born son to the beach. Poseidon made sure that this was the same stretch of beach Sally and Poseidon first met on. Sally noticed this and yet another wave of tears erupted, but this time much less violently. Sally had already shed the tears of grief for the son she wouldn't get to raise, for the husband she didn't get to wed. These tears were soft, they were not tears of sorrow, but tears of remembrance. Tears marking the end of Sally's streak of luck she found in Poseidon.

Once the ground turned from solid, warm ground to wet, unstable sand, the small, broken family knew it was time to part ways.

Sally kissed the small head of her son one last time and handed him over to Poseidon before he could ask for him, saying in her own way that she was giving Percy to his father voluntarily rather than being forced to. Her own small act of defiance. The most she could do without risking the life of her son.

Poseidon leaned down, his rough lips meeting Sally's soft ones, Percy cradled in between them, cooing softly.

"I love you so much. I will never forget you." Sally whispers to both Percy and Poseidon. "Make sure he knows. Tell him every day. His mother loves him so much."

"I will, I promise. I love you." In that moment, both Percy and Poseidon's eyes met hers. Four sea green eyes, both sets identical, meeting Sally's soft brown eyes. "I will always love you,"

The outline of Poseidon's back is blurred by tears as he recedes into the waves. These tears are not soft. These tears are of sorrow.

* * *

 **Man that was rough. I was very tempted to change every plan I had for this story and make Sally still able to raise Percy. Rip.**


	4. The Arrival

**lol sorry dear readers this is a bit awkward and overall not very good but it was a necessary part of the story so please don't cringe too much while reading**

* * *

In all of his many years, Poseidon has never felt a sorrow quite as acute as the pain he feels now. This pain is quite unlike other tribulations he has experienced. Those experiences tend to yield pain like a hard blow to the chest, painful, breathtaking, leaving an aching throb for a while until it's healed, but never leaving any scarring. This sorrow is different. This pain is a needle thin blade, shoved into his heart. The pain is crippling. This pain is all-consuming. This pain is the pain of heartbreak. This pain will leave a scar.

The cries of his infant son cut deep into his already aggrieved soul, another tiny blade penetrating the preexisting wound. He cradles Percy's head in his hand. The small child's entire body can be covered by Poseidon's hands. It has been so long since Poseidon interacted with a child this small, he knows he will need his wife's help with many things.

In that moment, for the first time since Percy's birth, Poseidon thinks about Amphitrite. Poseidon hopes with all his being that his wife will accept Percy; he needs a mother. And while he could have his choice of any nanny under the sea, someone paid to love Percy would not be the same as a mother giving out unconditional love.

At this point, Poseidon is completely submerged in the sea, his salty tears mingling with the ocean water. Immediately, Percy's cries stop. He looks around curiously, his enormous green eyes, a mirror image of his father's', almost bugging out of his head. He waves his small hands, feeling the water between his fingers and toes. Poseidon smiles, beside himself with love for this small being.

He has never been able to be a part of his mortal children's lives and has always regretted not being able to be more involved. Now he finally has the opportunity to, through at a very high cost. He cannot imagine the grief Sally is feeling- everything that made her life worth living has been ripped away from her. At least Poseidon has Percy. Sally has absolutely nothing.

Before long, Poseidon reaches his Palace, sighing in relief. As much as he loves Sally, being on the surface did not appeal to him. Atlantis was where he belonged. As soon as Poseidon entered the city, he was surrounded by many of his court. His advisor appeared before him, his servants surrounded him; he felt like he was suffocating. Instinctually, he hid Percy out of site, tucking him against his chest. Picking up on the commotion, Percy began to stir and Poseidon knew it wouldn't be long before he began to cry. He wasn't too keen on the entire city of Atlantis being aware of his son's presence before he wanted it known.

"Leave me," Poseidon thundered, and everyone scattered, leaving the path to the throne room of his palace clear. In under a minute, he arrives at the entrance to the throne room. He finds a congregation gathered around a table made of smoothed sea shells, Amphitrite at the head of the table. He sees blueprints laid out on the table and assumes that the purpose of this meeting is to plan for the game room he ordered to be constructed.

"Leave us," Poseidon says, in a voice demanding to be listened to but without the force he had used before.

Everyone but his wife leaves the room. Suddenly the space seems much larger than it had before when occupied with 20 mer-creatures.

"I have something to tell you," Poseidon says, his grief flowing openly from his words. Amphitrite notices and comes close to him, laying her hand, made heavy with the precious jewelry decorating her fingers, on his shoulder. Her eyes invite him to continue. Poseidon tries to continue with words but when they fail to come he simply shifts his hands, revealing the sleeping infant cradled to his chest.

Amphitrite wears a shocked expression, that quickly fades into one of suspicion. "What have you done?" She hisses, knowing exactly what her husband has done.

"I have saved my son from certain death." Poseidon responds in a voice thick with sorrow.

"Your son." Amphitrite repeats, sneering. Not a question. "Your son is currently swimming around Atlantis. _That_ is not your son." While she knows how common it is for the gods of Olympus to... fraternize with mortals, that makes this betrayal hurt no less. Furthermore, not only did Poseidon betray the trust of his wife but he betrayed the oath sworn on the Styx to not sire any more children with mortal women. Poseidon looks lost and despondent, and in no way about to deliver any kind of meaningful answer. "How could you do this? Not just to me- you broke the oath sworn by you and your brothers! There must be consequences?"

In response to her questioning tone, Poseidon looks up, taking his eyes finally off the human infant. "This is the punishment. It has been decided that since all of us have sired a child, we will be condemned to raise them ourselves, away from the mortal world." Amphitrite is too stunned to continue talking. How can Poseidon expect her to accept this bastard child into her palace? No doubt she'd be expected to raise him and act as his mother. She decides to say this. "I will not help in this. This is your punishment to bear and yours alone. I will not raise this bastard; he is not mine to raise. Do not expect me to mother him, he will not receive any love from me. Something as wretched as that _half_ breed is not worthy of living in this palace." And with a twirl of her skirts, Amphitrite disappears out of the throne room, leaving a stunned Poseidon and an oblivious Percy.

/\\\\\

It takes only until sundown for the entire population of Atlantis to hear about the tension between the king and queen of their city. A group of merfolk had been strolling through the palace when Queen Amphitrite erupted from the throne room. If looks could kill, the group would have been annihilated. All of those who had seen their queen storm from the throne room to the residential wing of her palace rushed off to tell their friends of this exciting event, who in turn told their friends and before long no one was unaware of the queen's temper.

It took much longer, however, for Atlantis to learn of the reason for its queen's anger. For days, the tension continued to build and it seemed like the ocean almost wouldn't be able to contain the strain contained in its depths. The water was responding to its master's mood and thus the world on the surface suffered. Earthquakes frequented New York and surrounding cities in addition to the dark, rough waves that dominated the beaches.

Finally, three days after Poseidon's arrival, word was that the king had enlisted Agape, the wife of a trusted member of Poseidon's council as a caregiver for the child. Immediately the rumors of a baby, an illegitimate baby, judging by Amphitrite's anger, was present in Atlantis. Weeks went by and the rumors persisted. They only grew in accuracy as more sightings of Percy occurred. Many people had come to the conclusion that the baby must be forbidden, or else why would Poseidon hide the baby from his beloved citizens?

The silence between Poseidon and Amphitrite persisted, and soon their son, Triton, joined in, apparently siding with his mother and ignoring Poseidon. The only time the family was seen interacting was during royal meetings, and even then the interactions were stiff and uncomfortable. It was even rumored that Amphitrite would not allow Poseidon into their rooms, leaving him to sleep in the nursery.

The residents of Atlantis hoped the horrible tension that dominated the city would reside soon.

* * *

 **thanks for getting through that, next chapter will be very interesting (at least I hope it will, I have big plans). Anyway, please review!**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **annades49800**


	5. Tensions

A fortnight had passed since the arrival of the sea god's illegitimate child and civil tensions had not been so palpable in centuries. Very soon after Percy's arrival, the entirety of the population of Atlantis knew of the illegitimate child, from the dolphins to the merfolk. Following in their king and queen's footsteps as the Atlanteans so often did, divisions formed within the population. The vast majority of merchants and, though they claimed utter neutrality, the royal court, sided with their queen, agreeing that the illegitimate child did not belong within the walls of their sacred city. The rest of the population- the craftsmen, dolphins and other sea creatures- sided with their king, arguing that the child should be protected at all costs seeing as he was innocent and while he was not "pure blooded", Percy's veins held royal blood, making him royalty in their eyes. As a result of these rivalries, the hostilities were escalating. Riots and other protests had been held by both parties. Before any violence had occurred the royal guard made sure the put a stop to the protests but it was only a matter of time before the inevitable occurred and a war broke out.

The only thing holding the city of Atlantis from entering a quasi-civil war was the threat of an outside enemy. In recent years the threat of rebellious cyclops-run forges had been a pressing matter. While most of the underwater forges were run wonderfully with very little issue, as with all things, some of the forges tended to side not with the current lord of the sea but with the previous: Oceanus. For centuries, groups of conservative sea creatures who preferred their old master have stirred up problems ranging from small skirmishes to full-fledged wars. The problem with the rebellious cyclops had not yet become large enough to be called a full fledged war but if something wasn't done soon it very well might become one.

It was this topic that was being discussed that morning in the council room. As per usual since Percy's arrival, Amphitrite was present at Poseidon's right hand yet the two were obviously very uncomfortable. This was apparent from both their tense body language and cool, clipped tones when addressing each other. On Poseidon's left sat his son, Triton. The tensions between father and son were not nearly as high as those between husband and wife yet their relationship was undeniably strained.

The hostile treatment from the people Poseidon usually sought comfort from was putting him on edge. It didn't help that some of the only friendly human contact Poseidon had was with his infant son. While Poseidon was elated to have Percy with him it was not like Percy could engage in much adult conversation or any conversation at all, being that he was only two weeks old. For this reason, Poseidon became hyper alert when in the presence of stimulating adult conversation which allowed him to pick up on the 20-foot whale bone javelin hurtling towards the council room at break neck speeds.

"Everyone, down!" Poseidon boomed with such authority that no one questioned his untimely demand and sought cover beneath the solid rock table in the center of the room. Poseidon sent a powerful current to the javelin head, altering its path by several yards. It landed on the far side of the council room, out of the way of all of the occupants of the meeting who remained hidden beneath the table. The debris of the javelin, however, was not so contained. Stone from the walls was thrown everywhere and while the majority of it landed outside the council room, some debris flew inwards, pummeling the room's occupants.

Poseidon risked looking out of the gaping hole in the wall made by the javelin to assess the situation outside the council room. It appeared the room had been one of many attacks on the city, and one of the only ones whose attack hadn't resulted in fire. All around the city, focused on the inner ring where the royal family and court lived, spears, flaming arrows and bombs of greek fire fell on buildings and monuments. A great abalone statue depicting Poseidon and Amphitrite had been victim of a bomb, leaving statue Poseidon headless. Poseidon didn't take this as a good sign. Gliding above the buildings were cyclopes in carriages pulled by giant shrimp. From the carriages, cyclopes jumped down onto the streets, wreaking havoc on the shops and causing terror with their clubs. Poseidon would have continued observing this ever worsening scene had a flaming arrow not flown towards the hole in the wall he was looking out of, forcing him to dive into the building.

This movement, and the flaming arrow that accompanied it seemed to wake the other occupants in the room from their daze. Atlanteans and mermen and dolphins rose from their hiding places and began running around the wrecked room in terror. Order needed to be restored.

Poseidon scanned the room in search for his son and head general of the Atlantean army, Triton. He found him conversing with General Belarus.

"Men," Poseidon said by way of greeting. "I need you to assemble the troops. We will need a defensive squad and an evacuation squad. The goal needs to be to evacuate the citizens and to push the threat out of the city as soon as possible."

"Yes, sire" the men said before rushing out of the room to assemble the troops, all rivalries forgotten in the midst of a common enemy.

Poseidon ran to Amphitrite expecting to find the cold, guarded expression he had grown used to but in its place finding fear for her city and love for her husband. The tender gaze of his wife gave him the courage to run his hand along her cheek, a movement that reminded him of Sally. He pushed these thoughts out of his mind and focused on the woman in front of him. Despite their fights, the couple had an overwhelming number of years spent together, the majority of which were filled with loving, happy memories. No matter how many mortal women Poseidon had affairs with, Amphitrite would always have a special place in his heart.

"My dear," Poseidon began. "Would you gather a task force to evacuate the palace? Take General Timoleon with you and proceed with the utmost caution. After the palace is evacuated go to the caves just outside the city, I will find you there when the threat is gone."

"It would be my honor, my Lord. I love you." Amphitrite placed a chaste kiss on Poseidon's cheek and was off before Poseidon could respond.

Poseidon leaped into action, blasting a hole larger than the one created by the javelin into the wall and swam into the melee, royal robes transfiguring into armor as he went.

/\\\\\

Amphitrite, with the general along side her, swam as fast as she could towards the entrance to the palace. 50 feet from the grand entrance General Timoleon grabbed her wrist, pulling her to a stop. Timoleon pointed above their heads. Flying towards the doors of the palace were two large bombs, most likely filled with greek fire.

"Looks like we're gonna need another entrance" Stated Timoleon. In response, Amphitrite broke free and began swimming towards a little-known entrance on the side of the palace.

"My Lady, stay beside me!" Shouted Timoleon as he attempted to catch up to the queen.

"No thank you," She responded under her breath, continuing to swim towards the hidden entrance. Like her husband, Amphitrite had a difficult time following instructions unless she was the one giving them.

"Here!" Amphitrite bellowed, gesturing to the shallow outline of a door, hidden behind a tall patch of coral.

"What is here?" Timoleon demand. "My Lady," He added, glancing nervously at the queen.

"Oh don't bother with such formalities, especially in wartime. There is a secret door here." Amphitrite gestured to the outline. "Help me push" Together the two were able to push in the door revealing a small, musty passageway illuminated by small patches of bioluminescent algae.

"Right through here. This should lead to the sitting room near the kitchen." They swam through the passageway as fast as the small space, tight turns and periodic rumbling from bombs permitted. At the exit, Amphitrite moved the large portrait that covered the passageway several inches to the left, allowing her to see the room beyond the tunnel.

"All clear," She whispered. She moved the portrait just enough to allow the two to exit before sliding it back over the tunnel. "Don't want any cyclops spotting that" She stated briefly before swimming out of the room, poking her head around the door and into the hall to ensure no unwanted visitors lurked there.

"Should we split up?" Amphitrite asked. "We could cover more ground that way."

"No. The king has tasked me with your protection, I am not leaving you."

"Alright then follow me. And keep your eyes and ears open for people who need to be evacuated or intruders."

/\\\\\

The two scoured the palace, encountering very few people who needed evacuating. When they encountered adults they sent them on their way, telling them to go quietly and quickly to the caves outside the city. When they encountered children they kept them with them until they found an adult and sent them along together. This continued as they made their way through the palace until they encountered the nursery Poseidon's illegitimate offspring had been living in.

Around them, pieces of the ceiling were crumbling off. The sound of bombs going off around the city had become as familiar as a heartbeat.

"Your majesty, we need to leave soon! We must get the child and leave at once!" Timoleon shouted over the sounds of destruction.

Amphitrite was conflicted. This child had caused the worst civil tensions her city had experienced in centuries. His death could resolve this. If he were to die in the chaos of a cyclops invasion there could be no blame put on Amphitrite. He could simply be made a martyr, someone used to fuel the rage towards the rebellious cyclops and other Oceanus supporters. Her life could go back to normal. She would have her family together again. Together and happy.

But Amphitrite could not fool herself. In what world would Poseidon be happy following the death of his newborn son? Percy's death may fix civil rivalries but the rift in Poseidon's heart if his son were to die would most definitely not heal anytime soon. Furthermore, the infant was an innocent in the matter. It wasn't his fault that his birth caused such turmoil.

Amphitrite had made up her mind. With her head held high, knowing that seeing the child would put a face to her husband's betrayal, she walked into Percy's nursery closely followed by Timoleon. As soon as the small child set his eyes on Amphitrite, his crying lessened, perhaps anticipating her bringing him to safety. She approached his crib and reached down to pull the infant into her arms.

Above her, Amphitrite didn't realize the beam holding up the ceiling was cracking. The sound of breaking wood was covered up by the wails of Percy and the blast of bombs and yells of soldiers at war. For this reason, when the beam finally broke, there was nothing the trio could do to prevent the ceiling from falling onto them.


	6. Still in the Woods

Chapter 6: Still in the Woods

Poseidon cut through the water at full-tilt, commanding his forces from above and sending bullets of high-speed water at his enemies. From his high vantage point, Poseidon saw perfectly when the quartet of greek fire bombs landed on the east wing of his palace, where his rooms and Percy's nursery was located. He hoped his wife and son were safe from the bombing.

/\\\\\

Amphitrite closed her eyes and clutched the infant she had so recently vowed to protect to her chest in hopes of shielding him from the worst of the damage caused by the falling ceiling. She internally scoffed at the irony of it. She felt something slam against her back, toppling her to the ground but she didn't seem to be injured. Perhaps it was the adrenalin. The sound of falling debris was deafening. Amphitrite felt certain her time on earth was coming to a close. Closing her eyes tighter in hopes of preventing emminent death, her thoughts moved from regret towards her recent treatment to her husband to the fond memories she had with him and their son to the child squirming in her arms now. This brought her back to the present.

Where was the pain? At this point Amphitrite felt it necessary to open her eyes, despite her fears that she would open them and find herself in the realm of Hades. The view that greeted her newly open eyes made her blink several times to fully understand. The three of them were completely surrounded by debris yet none of it touched them. The noise had stopped, leaving a dreadful, ceaseless ringing in her ears. The deafening silence made Amphitrite remember the baby she was holding, who ought to be wailing his little heart out. Instead she found his face scrunched into an expression of concentration.

 _Zeus, please don't let the kid be relieving himself at a time like this._ Then she realized- Percy was responsible for their survival! What else could have manipulated the water to create a protective bubble around them? The realization drove white hot spikes of shame into Amphitrites heart. She had been contemplating letting the child die and here he was saving her. Most likely it wasn't Amphitrite he was trying to save, and most likely it wasn't even a conscious decision, just a child acting out of instinct. Regardless, Amphitrite felt as if she would never be able to forgive herself. She vowed to get this child out of this mess if it was the last thing she did.

The first step would be to get themselves out of the wreckage and she would need the general's help with this. "Timoleon, rise. We need to remove ourselves from this mess" With difficulty, considering the very small bubble of safety Percy had created, Timoleon turned to face the Queen and the ever tiring Percy.

"How did this happen? How are we still alive?" Timoleon questioned, fear evident in his eyes, though he was obviously trying to put on a brave face for his queen's sake.

"It was the boy. Percy. He saved us. He has powers greater than I anticipated. But he is quickly tiring; we must remove ourselves from the debris before it collapses around us."

"Sounds good to me, my Lady." Timoleon responded before reaching up beyond the bubble of safety and attempting to lift part of a wall. Amphitrite gently laid Percy onto the ground and helped Timoleon push until the wall was moved. This continued until a tunnel going up towards the top of the wreckage was made.

"You go first, your majesty. I'll hand the prince to you once you reach the top and then I'll follow you." Amphitrite was stumped at hearing the term prince used for someone who was not her son, but rather than call that to attention she simply said, "Not your majesty. It's not necessary. Now, help me up." Timoleon linked his fingers together to form a step and pushed up to give Amphitrite a boost, allowing her to swim to the top quickly. Once at the top of the newly made tunnel, Amphitrite laid on her stomach and reached down to take Percy. Timoleon followed.

They looked around, trying to get their bearings. They saw that the entire palace had not collapsed, just this wing, and only the top two floors fell onto the floors below. All Amphitrite could think was how long this all would take to clean up. And just when they were about to start the construction of the game room.

"Queen?" Timoleon questioned, snapping Amphitrite out of her lull. "Sorry," She replied. "Let's go that way, towards the window. We can swim down from there and get out to the streets." Timoleon nodded his understanding.

As quietly as possible, though this was not very quiet at all, given that the entire floor was covered with broken decorative shells and other very crunchable debris, the trio made their way across the wrecked floor. They went from one large pile of wreckage to another, peeking out from the side to ensure their clear passing. Thus far the going had been free of cyclopes or other tormentors. Of course their streak of luck could not continue.

Right before Amphitrite was about to rush out to run to the next pile of debris, Timoleon pulled her back so swiftly that gravity nearly yanked Percy from her arms. "What is it?" Amphitrite demanded angrily.

"Shhh!" Timoleon beckoned in front of them towards a pair of cyclopes who looked like they were patrolling the ruins. The trio sank back against their shelter and listened to the footsteps of their enemies.

"-won't be happy. He had hoped to get some leverage over the 'king of the ocean'" The cyclopes' mocking tone indicated very clearly that he thought the current king of the ocean, Poseidon, was undeserving of his title. "There's still more wreckage to look through. No one has reported seeing any of the royal family leave, so someone must still be here. Imagine how generous the boss would be if we find them! We'll be rewarded greatly- perhaps even given our freedom!"

Amphitrite and Timoleon locked eyes- they were right to be careful, the cyclopes were looking to take hostages belonging to the royal family. Timoleon continued to keep watch, peeking his head around their cover every couple of minutes to check if the cyclopes had left yet but to no avail. In fact, it seemed as if they were trying to wait out anyone who was hiding in the wreckage. If anyone else climbed out, unknowing of the waiting cyclopes they would be unable to evade capture.

"This is getting ridiculous. Even if we manage to get by without them seeing us, we'd make too much noise. There's no way we're getting out of here without a diversion." Timoleon stated, and the determined set of his eyes told Amphitrite exactly what he kind of diversion he was planning.

"I am not allowing you to use yourself as a diversion. There is no way I am allowing you to sacrifice yourself when there are other ways of going about this. Let's just throw something and run."

"That sounds like a much better plan. I support it wholeheartedly." Timoleon replied, eagerly seeking a piece of debris that would take his place as diversion. "Will this do?" He asked while holding a stone the size of a fist.

"It's perfect. I suggest you throw it, you are certainly stronger than I." And so he did. The stone sailed through the water hitting a pile of debris around 50 feet from them. Wooden planks tumbled down creating more than enough noise to catch the attention of the cyclopes.

"You go check it out, I'm comfortable here." One of the cyclopes stated, much to the chagrin of Amphitrite and Timoleon. Before the two could contemplate how to make both cyclopses move, Percy woke up. And of course, upon waking, Percy found that this was a suitable time to start crying. What started off as a small whimper quickly escalated into deafening wails, a sound that was so thunderous it seemed as though it could carry over the entire city of Atlantis.

"Find that baby!" Demanded the previously seated cyclopes. He and his partner ran towards the trio, a sight that made Percy cry impossibly louder.

The trio had no choice but to run away from the cyclopes. This sadly happens to also mean they were running away from the window that had been their escape plan. _No time to think about that now. Just run._ And run Amphitrite did, unknowing that Timoleon was no longer beside her.

"Where do we go?" Amphitrite demanded after running into the wall on the other side of the floor that was, unfortunately, windowless. After receiving no response Amphitrite finally realized that Timoleon was intent on bringing his first plan to completion. Scanning the space she had just run she spotted the general battling both cyclops, somehow holding his own. "Go!" he managed to shout. While Amphitrite did not think of herself as someone who would allow someone else to die for her, she found herself running toward the open window, Percy in hand, without thinking twice. Upon reaching the window, Amphitrite turned back in time to see Timoleon decapitate one of

While Amphitrite did not think of herself as someone who would allow someone else to die for her, she found herself running toward the open window, Percy in tow, without thinking twice. Upon reaching the window, Amphitrite turned back in time to see Timoleon decapitate one of the cyclopses. She cheered in victory, leading to the distraction of the general. He turned violently waving for Amphitrite to go on. With his head momentarily turned, the remaining cyclops took the advantage and swung his club skull-crushingly fast towards Timoleon's head. His only option was to fall to his back, allowing the club to sail over his head. With Timoleon down there was no way he could win this fight. Unable to watch, Amphitrite launched herself from the window.

* * *

 **Do you think Percy would get pruney being perpetually underwater or do you think it's in his powers to not be pruney?**

 **Please leave ideas of what you want to see in this story and what you think of this chapter in the reviews! I have some plans but if yall have any ideas for baby Percy you'd like me to write I'd love to hear them! PS the more reviews I get the more motivated I am to update weekly (which is a stretch but still something i hope to accomplish)!**

 **~annades49800**


End file.
